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| CM Mehbooba focuses on tourism | | | Early Times Report
Srinagar, May 22: To re-position Kashmir as the world-class tourist destination, J&K is all set to adopt 360 degree approach to sustainable tourism, that includes effective planning, maximising social and economic benefits for stakeholders, enhancing cultural heritage and reducing negative impacts.
To achieve this objective, J&K tourism department is developing a mobile application for online bookings of hotels and reservations in a hassle-free manner.
In an interaction of chief minister Mehbooba Mufti with tourism and business delegations here today, a dire need was felt for tourism businesses, visitors and hosts to take a well-planned stride towards achieving sustainability in the growth of tourism in J&K, especially the valley.
The chief minister sought cooperation from all tourism and business stakeholders in reviving the state's economy, which primarily depends on lucrative tourism industry, and to re-position Kashmir as the world-class tourist destination.
She said tourism industry was the backbone of state's economy and its revival was one of the top priorities of her government.
"Tourism spreads best by the word of mouth and the players associated with the industry have a lot at stake in establishing a feel-good factor among visitors. It is the collective responsibility of all stakeholders to see that no visitor is harassed," she said.
Mehbooba said peace had to be maintained at all costs for the growth of tourism in Kashmir and in case it was disturbed, business fraternity would have to bear the brunt.
She told the delegations of J&K Tourism Alliance and Travel Agents'Association of Kashmir (TASK) that the government had for the past one year made strenuous efforts in projecting Kashmir as a world-class tourist destination.
"There are still many areas which need to be tapped to open new avenues to enhance tourist experience," she said.
"We have to reach out to the tourists with open arms so that they experience the rich hospitality for which we are famous all over the world," she said, while urging hoteliers, houseboat owners, shikarawallas, ponywallas, tour and travel operators to facilitate visitors so that they go back with fond memories of the place.
The chief minister said tourism department was developing a mobile application which would enable tourists to make online bookings and reservations in a hassle-free manner. She also asked the tourism secretary to operate pre-paid taxis from strategic locations, like airports and railway stations, for the convenience of visitors.
"Road shows will also be organised in the countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia from where the valley receives a fairly large number of tourists," she informed.
Asking the tourism secretary to promote paying guest scheme among people of downtown areas, Mehbooba said the government was also actively pursuing withdrawal of advisories imposed by some countries on visiting the state.
The delegations appreciated government efforts in reviving tourism industry, which include operation of early morning and night flights from Srinagar Airport and extending LTC to central government employees travelling to J&K on private airlines, which would go a long way in improving the footfall of visitors.
They brought to the chief minister's notice issues including exorbitant airfares, hassle-free disembarkation of tourists at airports, uniformity in hotel rates, revival of cycling tracks along Boulevard, harassment of tourists at various resorts like Gulmarg and Sonamarg and cleaning of Dal Lake.
A delegation of Adventure Tour Operators of Kashmir, led by Rauf Tramboo, also met Mehbooba and highlighted the potential of adventure tourism in the state. He said adventure tourism had emerged as one of the fastest growing segments in travel industry and the state was ideally-placed to venture into this area by roping in big corporate houses and adventurists.
She asked the tourism secretary to conceptualize a plan for promotion of adventure tourism activities at Tossa Maidan and Bangus valley. She stressed upon having separate adventure sports calendar for activities like rafting, heli-skiing, mountaineering, trekking and paragliding.
She also floated the idea of incorporating adventure tourism in school curriculum at high-secondary level to generate awareness among young aspiring students.
A delegation of Kashmir Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), led by Mushaq Ahmad Wani, also called on her and apprised her of the issues related to promotion of trade and industry, including revisiting the J&K Industrial Policy and promotion of Valley's export-oriented handicraft industry.
Mehbooba Mufti assured them that their demands would be looked into and addressed on priority.
Another delegation of Basix Social Enterprises, led by Raja Muzaffar, also met her and briefed her of the initiatives it had taken in the promotion of skill development, livelihood for low-income households, solid waste management and access to institutional finance. He said the group, which had started working in Kashmir, focuses on areas of unemployment, facilitating credit from banking institutions and providing market linkages so that the youth were trained in hospitality and digital sectors like IT in which the demand for human resource was growing every day.
The delegation also discussed its model of household-level waste collection with segregation by using odour-free technology. To begin with, the organization has offered its services to SMC for taking up five small wards for solid waste management on a pilot basis.
CM's principal secretary Navin K Chaudhary and secretary of tourism, floriculture, gardens and parks, Farooq A Shah were also present on the occasion. |
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